Calorie Question re:Gastric Bypass

[Korrie]

Ok, so I always hear that women shouldn't go below 1200 calories. Its not safe..its not good for your metabolism..you won't lose that much weight, ect. However, in the past week I've watched a couple TV shows about gastric bypass...not that I"m going to have it, just bored! lol! Anyways..one specific episode caught my attention. The dct was telling the pt that right now his stomach holds 2000-3000 cc's and after the surgery he would only be able to consume 200 cc's. Thats a MAJOR cut back. Basically the gastric bypass helps you by not making you feel hungry, as opposed to going low cal only and feeling hungry more often.

ANYWAYS...my question is, why if we shouldn't go below 1200 cals, can a gastric bypass pt. have sooo much less than that??

 

[KaraCooks]

If you research gastric bypass in it's entirety, you'll see that people who have it spend the rest of their lives taking a very specific set of supplements to make up for the fact that they can no longer get all the nutrition they need from food.

If you do even more research, you'll see that most people who have the surgery suffer symptoms of bad nutrition - everything from hair loss to weak nails, etc. This is especially true for people who think that they can slack off on the supplements that they're given.

People don't realize that having gastric bypass doesn't just mean that they eat less o the same food - it means that they have to change the way they eat for the rest of their lives. And not in the healthy "lifestyle change" way we talk about losing weight and eating better, but in ways that mean they will never ever ever again be able to eat normally ... they will always have to consume supplements or nutrient enriched drinks in order to make up for not being able to eat properly.

 

[Korrie]

ooooh, I understand that. I guess I thought that after you have reached your goal weight, that you can start to eat a healthier diet??? You hear about people gaining all their weight back all the time, so thats why I was thinking that. Makes sence though, thanks for the clarification

 

[KaraCooks]

guess I thought that after you have reached your goal weight, that you can start to eat a healthier diet???

Well supposedly the diet you eat after is healthy - just supplemented. But remember that you can't "go back" to eating more or different foods because your entire digestive system has been permanently altered - your stomach has been surgically reduced in size, and your intestines have actually been rerouted. The entire duodenum is replumbed.

There are cases where people have continued to eat bad for them foods and gradually eaten more and more and more to the point that they've stretched their stomach pouch and been able to increase intake. Those are generally the people who gain the weight (some of it at least) back, but also the ones who tend to suffer from the nutrition issues.

I have a friend who had surgery for cancer (a whipple procedure) and part of that includes the equivalent of a GB. He has to take certain pills and drinks for the rest of his life to compensate for what he can't eat any more.

But most of the doctors and weight loss clinics who push this type o surgery don't tell you that. They give you the shiny-happy weight loss part and discount the emotional toll of having to drastically change your diet in that way.

 

[Korrie]

But most of the doctors and weight loss clinics who push this type o surgery don't tell you that. They give you the shiny-happy weight loss part and discount the emotional toll of having to drastically change your diet in that way.

Yea, thats true I suppose. One of my nursing instructors said that one of her friends had the lapband done and I guess after that you can NEVER eat certain foods again, like meat, how depressing!